By Mitch Gaynor
UNFORTUNATELY for the thousands of customers who rely on the Beerwah Co-Op and servo each month, nothing short of a miracle will keep it in its current – and very handy – spot outside Beerwah train station beyond mid-2027.
As GC&M News reports this week (p4–5), Transport and Main Roads is unwavering in its push to deliver the $5.5bn Wave rail project.
That means a major expansion of Beerwah station, including a four-storey, 400-space car park right on the Co-Op site.
The Co-Op’s lease ends in June 2027, and work will soon accelerate to reshape the area.
A public – and at times emotional – briefing held by the Co-Op board last week laid out the stark reality.
At best, the Co-Op relocates, possibly to a Roys Road industrial-park site. At worst, it doesn’t survive.
One thing is becoming increasingly clear: the fuel station won’t be moving with it. The cost – around $7 million – and the logistics make it effectively impossible without significant backing from the fuel provider.
That would leave Beerwah with a single servo, and one that’s unsuitable for larger vehicles. Given Beerwah’s growth trajectory, that’s hardly sustainable.
And this comes after Sunshine Coast Council rejected the Coles and service-station proposal on the corner of Steve Irwin Way and Roys Road.
Plenty of common-sense ideas were offered at the briefing, but the uncomfortable truth is the train has already left the station.
What matters now is securing the best possible outcome for the hinterland.
A four-storey car park in the middle of town is no one’s idea of progress.
To borrow from Douglas Adams, no civilisation has ever coined the phrase “as pretty as a car park”.
But could this upheaval at least be used to re-establish Simpson Street, or to better connect the station with the Marketplace?
Can TMR show that funnelling rail users into a central car park will benefit local businesses rather than choke the town centre?
Many at the meeting doubted it, and questioned whether the experts signing off on the project fully grasp the on-the-ground implications. A town already split by a rail line can’t afford to be carved up further.
TMR needs to prove these plans won’t make things worse.
Strap in. Because much like a four-storey car park, this could get ugly fast.
Wish list
Speaking of trains, Christmas is coming at me, and maybe you, like a polar express.
We’ve decorated our tree and pulled out the Christmas tunes, which are on repeat for the next few weeks. I love a good festive song, but no matter how hard I try, I can never remember all 12 Days of Christmas first go.
And while I can put up with Mariah Carey for a few weeks, nothing gives me bigger Grinch vibes than Pentatonix.
Is there a more divisive noise than a capella. What a way to ruin such a nice time of year.
